Let’s face it: green cleaning can be confusing. From acronyms to certified products, interpreting what environmentally green cleaning terms actually mean can be a challenge. Buying cleaning supplies is easy with this Green Cleaning Glossary to help you understand even the most unclear green cleaning terms.
LEED: Stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design and is a certification program for green buildings. The LEED program has four levels: certified, silver, gold, and platinum, and aims toward encouraging architects, builders, and maintenance personnel to design, construct, and maintain buildings in a way that is energy efficient as well as environmentally friendly. A variety of products, such as green toilet paper, can help a building qualify for LEED points and lead toward a certification as a green building.

A flushable bathroom cleaner
Biodegradable: A biodegradable product is one that will decompose naturally when exposed to the elements. Biodegradable products are environmentally friendly, and include items such as Scrubbing Bubbles Flushable Bathroom Cleaner Wipes.
Carcinogen: A carcinogen is any chemical that is known to cause cancer. Green cleaning products are known to contain fewer carcinogens and thus are healthier than nongreen products.
HEPA: Stands for High-Efficiency Particulates Air filters. HEPA filters are a common green cleaning feature on vacuums, and help reduce the number of particulates that pass through the filter, thus improving the overall air quality. HEPA vacuums such as the Saniataire Model SC5845 Bagless can be purchased at CleaningProductsWorld.
Post-Consumer Products: This term refers to products that have been discarded by a consumer and subsequently recycled into a new product. Post-Consumer Products include Sunrise Paper Towels and Green Heritage Jumbo Roll Tissue.
VOC: Stands for Volatile Organic Compounds and are given off by a variety of cleaning products including degreasers, disinfectants, and pesticides. VOCs can cause a multitude of health risks; however, many green cleaning products contain low VOCs.
FSC Certified: FCS stands for Forest Stewardship Council, an organization that ensures that all products with its certification are made from trees in FCS certified forests, controlled sources, or are recycled from post-consumer waste. Products carrying an FCS certification include Kleenex Hand Towels.
Let us know if there are any other terms you need defined!